Stanley Twardowicz (1917-2008) was a painter and photographer who first gained notoriety with his poured paintings in the 1950s and his photographs of figures from the Beat Generation. Introduced to Zen by the Japanese-American painter Kenzo Okada, Twardowicz began a series of paintings in the 1960s, moving away from the aesthetics of action painting toward a more centered and meditative image. Known as the Ovals, the paintings explored a central dot surrounded by softly modulating, concentric bands of color. Part of the experiments with Zen and mind-expanding philosophies that animated aesthetic thought in the 1960s, these paintings envisioned a new abstract sublime and are admired for their complex color and illusionistic depth. Twardowicz continued to paint in this vein until his retirement in 2005. This exhibition marks the first time that Twardowicz's work is on display at the Zimmerli.